1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a tablet dispenser comprising a tubular protective housing, in which a guide shaft is provided with longitudinal tracks for tablets, which can be inserted in the form of a column-like stack, and with a pressure-loaded ram for one end of the stack of tablets, which ram feeds the tablets along the longitudinal tracks to an ejector, which engages the stack adjacent to its other end by which the tablets, which are guided between lateral guides adjacent to the ejector, can individually be displaced transversely to the longitudinal direction of the stack.
Such tablet dispensers are preferably used for tablets which can easily be assembled in a column-like stack, such as tablets having a prismatic or cylindrical periphery. A main field of application of the tablet dispenser are refreshing tablets and lozenges which have basically the shape of a rectangular prism and contact each other on their flat sides in the stack.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In known tablet dispensers the longitudinal tracks for the stack of tablets are formed in a separate drawer, which at its end that protrudes out of the protective housing carries the ejector, and the drawer is open only on that side to which the tablets are pushed out so that the stack of tablets can be inserted from that side when the drawer has been pulled out. The ram, which in that case is longitudinally slidably guided in the drawer and in the housing, is supported at the inner end of the drawer by means of a compression spring, which is accommodated within the tablet-guiding shaft. As the empty drawer is pulled out, that ram engages detent means provided adjacent to the opening of the tube opening of the protective housing and said detent means prevent a further pulling out or pushing out of the ram. The drawer must be extractable at least by the length of the stack. Regardless of whether or not the drawer is filled, the compression spring tends to pull the drawer into the protective housing as far as to a stop and thus performs a dual function, because when the drawer has been pushed in the compression spring will advance the ram and the stack of tablets by the height of a tablet whenever a tablet has been taken.
The known tablet dispenser has various disadvantages. Above all, it is necessary to use relatively expensive springs which are of intricate shape in dispensers for rectangular prismatic tablets, which may consist of coil springs having convolutions contacting and extending along the periphery of a prism, and in assembling it is necessary to assemble the three parts consisting of the protective housing, drawer and spring in exactly predetermined positions and to insert the ram below the detent means of the protective housing. During a part of the assembling at least a part of the spring is prestressed between the spring and the drawer so that carelessness may have the result that the parts previously contacted with each other will be forced apart. Assembling can be effected only by hand rather than by automatic apparatuses. Most tablet dispensers of the present kind are definitely mass-produced articles so that the assembling costs have previously constituted a large share of the total costs. The spring which is provided is not only expensive in its manufacture, but has additional decisive disadvantages. The spring has a relatively high initial stress when the drawer has been pulled out. Faults in the manufacture of the tablet dispenser, normal wear in use or arbitrary damage may have the result that the ejector ram is no longer satisfactorily held by the detent means at the tube end of the protective housing but will jump out when the drawer has been pulled out so that the stack is then thrown out and the spring also jumps out along an uncontrollable path. Such a spring jumping out may inflict injuries mainly to the face and eyes and for this reason the previous tablet dispensers are objectionable also owing to that danger and to product liability.
In most cases it is usual to supply the stack of tablets in separate packages and to fill the tablet dispenser with the stack of tablets which has been taken from the package and in some cases even with individual tablets which are consecutively supplied. That procedure is expensive and because the stack or individual tablets must be grasped it is unhygienic. Besides, the stack often falls apart as it is transferred from the package into the tablet dispenser and in that case must be re-ordered.